UNDP-EU partnership: stories from the field

Here you will find stories that illustrate the partnership between UNDP and the Europan Union in the field. Given that our partnership covers 140 countries and spans over a decade, these stories represent just a fraction of what we do together. They are however important as they show what difference our partnership makes in the lives of people. They show how we help empower people and support the building of resilient nations.

Our Stories

Ten years ago, a pioneering Government of Bangladesh-UNDP-UNCDF initiative in Sirajganj District blew the cobwebs off local governance. The project demonstrated for the first time that empowered local institutions can balance books transparently and engage communities to make the best use of scarce public resources.

Nazma Ahmed was thrown off the land she was leasing to grow grain and not given back her deposit of Tk 20,000. Her case wasn’t resolved by the village elders. In the months she waited for the village elders to take action she, her mother and her daughter went hungry, she explains.

The EU Border Assistance Mission to Moldova and Ukraine – fully funded by the EU and implemented by UNDP - contributes to the delivery of good quality border and customs services to the citizens and companies of Moldova, Ukraine and the European Union.

In Central Asia, effective border control is important for security reasons and for promoting legitimate trade and transit. One of the largest UNDP-EU programmes in Central Asia, -BOMCA - is a complex, multifaceted programme, assisting five Central Asian countries – Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan with border management.

Kong Theara beamed broadly when she was handed a seaming machine as a special prize for graduating at the top of her sewing class. “I don’t think I will be poor anymore in the future,” Kong Theara, 22, said.